Trump's Broken Promises: LGBTQ Edition

During his 2016 campaign, then-candidate and pathological liar Donald "Rump" Trump tried to convince the LGBTQ community that he was on their side in fighting discrimination. After nearly three years of his corrupt regime, he's done the opposite. As ProPublica is reporting, Trump has supported "religious" exemptions to civil rights laws that will make it far easier for religious bigots to discriminate against the LGBTQ community. Moreover, Trump has narrowed the regulations and laws against discrimination based on sex to exclude gays and lesbians. Trump has also barred transgender people from enlisting in the armed forces.

ProPublica documents 31 examples of Trump undoing gains by the LGBTQ community, including:

"On July 26, 2017, just months after taking office, the president tweeted that he planned to ban transgender people from military service." 

"Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent a memo that reversed the Justice Department’s position on whether the Civil Rights Act protects transgender people from workplace discrimination. " 

"According to a 2019 report by the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, the Trump administration’s Department of Education has drastically scaled back civil rights enforcement for LBGTQ students." 

"The Department of Health and Human Services proposed a rule that would eliminate Obama-era regulations explicitly prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex stereotyping..." 

"HHS dropped proposed requirements for hospitals to establish policies that prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation in order to participate in Medicare and Medicaid."

That just scratches the surface and doesn't measure the malign effects of Trump's permission slip for his thuggish Red Cap Cult to perpetrate hate crimes against minorities, including LGBTQ people.  His close and cynical embrace of far-right evangelical bigots is another sign that he lied about his earlier commitment. In dealing with a pathological liar, expect him to lie and lie and lie.

Smugglers Cut Through Trump's "Impenetrable" Wall

Sociopath and racist demagogue Donald "Rump" Trump's most iconic message in his Russia-assisted campaign in 2016 was to build a wall (that Mexico would pay for) on the southern border with Mexico. In reality, much of the construction has been to replace existing barriers -- only 64 miles of it to date. What Trump promised -- a 1,000 mile-long concrete barrier -- has changed to 450 miles of wall of fencing and barriers, and only 110 miles of it would be where no barrier previously existed. To fund his wall (that Mexico would pay for), Trump has diverted $3.6 billion in Defense Department funds previously appropriated for military projects, including family housing, a move that's being challenged in court.

With that as background, the Washington Post is reporting that smugglers have been successful in cutting through the wall that has just recently been installed, allowing for the passage of people and drugs. From the article:

"The breaches have been made using a popular cordless household tool known as a reciprocating saw that retails at hardware stores for as little as $100. When fitted with specialized blades, the saws can slice through one of the barrier’s steel-and-concrete bollards in a matter of minutes, according to the agents, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the barrier-defeating techniques. 

After cutting through the base of a single bollard, smugglers can push the steel out of the way, allowing an adult to fit through the gap. Because the bollards are so tall — and are attached only to a panel at the very top — their length makes them easier to push aside once they have been cut and are left dangling, according to engineers consulted by The Washington Post."  (our emphasis)

There were reports months ago that Trump's wall was able to be penetrated, either by cutting through it or climbing over it.  However, as penetrable as his wall is proving to be, Trump will continue to tell his gullible cult that everything's perfect and they'll buy it:

"Trump has increasingly boasted to crowds in recent weeks about the superlative properties of the barrier, calling it 'virtually impenetrable' and likening the structure to a 'Rolls-Royce' that border-crossers cannot get over, under or through."

As with everything Trump sells, it's part of a scam.